Meadow Garden - Home Of George Walton Signer Of The Declaration Of Independence

On our first trip to Georgia in February to see our son at Fort Gordon, he took us to visit the riverfront area for some sightseeing. On the way we crossed over a road named Walton Way. My 'genealogy ears' perked up because I knew that we had Walton connections to Augusta back during the Revolutionary War era. My son pulled out his handy smartphone and checked some things, and found that on Walton Way is the old restored home of George Walton, signer of the Declaration Of Independence, and my great great great uncle. We stopped by and the house was closed but decided that we would for sure visit it on our next Georgia trip.
My son and his family went to tour the home a couple of times and then last month my husband and I went to visit our son Easter and were able to take a tour of the home, given by a sweet volunteer member of the DAR, who maintain the home.
George Walton was raised by his uncle and aunt George Walton and Martha Hughes Walton, my direct ancestor. It was wonderful to walk through his home and see a picture on the wall of Martha Hughes, my great great great great(?)Grandmother! I think this is the first time I have ever stood in an 'ancestor's' home and it was a wonderful feeling of connection with our familys' past. Here is a photo of us at the home that day:

A New Link

I was so happy today to hear from a fellow genealogist who came across the maiden name of my great great grandmother, a name I had searched for many times without success. Thank you to David ____ for sharing with me.
I want to do some research now to fill out more details, but here are the basics he game me:

Mary Adaline Adkins, wife of P.M. Adkins d. Mar 15 1944 in Cabell County WV.
Listed as parents were Benjamin F. Nunley and Elizabeth Jane Odell
Jane listed as being from Tazewell Virginia.

Benjamin's wife has always been just plain "Jane" to me until today. Odell is a brand new surname I've never researched. I can't wait to begin!

History Of Logan County West Virginia

The History of Logan County....Updated...Now Available

The "History of Logan County" was originally written by Henry Clay Ragland about the year 1896. Notes by additional historians and genealogists have been added. All proceeds from the first printing of this book will be donated to the Logan County Historical Society and the Logan County Landmark Commission to purchase a statue in the likeness of Chief John Logan. First printing, 1996.

"The History of Logan County" can be ordered from:

* Chamber of Commerce, 214 Stratton Street, Logan, WV 25601, Phone Number: (304) 752-1324.
* Price is $15 plus $1.50 shipping

I am interested in Logan County because my Dad was born there and my Mom and Dad were both raised there. I think it's time to simply order a copy of my own, instead of reading bits and pieces from online sources. If any of my readers are interested in Logan County West Virginia, here is the information for requesting a copy.

Genealogy Blogging For Family Relations

Tomorrow I will be teaching a beginner's genealogy blogging course at a local family history conference. I certainly don't feel like an expert, but I do love genealogy blogs and the wonderful way they can connect family members together!
My focus will be on making sure each newbie blogger knows how to label their posts, how to set up their sidebar gadgets to help readers find family research information quickly, and how to make sure they have maximum SEO (search engine optimization) to help google and other browsers find their blog articles quickly.
Wish me luck! I always learn more than I teach when I do a class of this kind. Hopefully I can bring some of that new knowledge to my blog next week.

Adalade Gilkerson Sansom 1859-1940

Let me tell you a little about Adalade Gilkerson, a wonderful lady in my family tree. Adalade is my G-G-Grandmother.

She was born on 17 Sep 1859 in Wayne County Virginia (later West Virginia), to Ira and Sarah (Price) Gilkerson. She married Green Sansom on 2 Apr 1874 when she was 14 yrs old by the records, although she stated on a later census record that she was 17 at the time of her marriage. Census records show that she was the mother of 17 children, 11 of whom survived until adulthood.

Adalade and Green lived in Wayne County WV. One correspondence note I have says that Green was previously married to someone with the surname or Clark, but I have no further records of her beyond that.

Adalade died on 7 Nov 1940 in Lavalette, Wayne County, West Virginia and was buried there in the Adkins Cemetery.

Clyde Parks - West Virginia - 1911 to 1938

Clyde Parks was one of my Mom's uncles, and a very nice man according to her. He had blue eyes, curly blonde hair, and looked very much like his sister Bessie (my Grandma). He was killed at age 25 in a mine accident, as he was "a mine car dropper, [and] was crushed to death beneath the wheels of four rail cars" according to a
Charleston Daily Mail Article. At that time he was living with his sister Thelma and her husband and kids. My mom also lived with them at the time.
According to Louise Ball, another of Clyde's sisters, he is buried at the Hatfield Cemetery in Sarah Ann West Virginia. His death certificate also shows him as buried there. I looked for a grave marker for him when I made a trip there in July 1998, but couldn't find his grave. Probably another case of no money for a marker, the same as with my grandfather Henry Simpson.

George Walton - Signer of the Declaration of Independence

Every family tree seems to contain a few illustrious members in addition to the assortment of colorful characters that populate the twigs as well. My Walton family includes one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, George Walton. Here is how I am related:

My great great great Grandfather was Augustus George Walton, b. 8 Jun 1782 in Georgia. His Dad was Robert Walton, son of George Walton and Martha Hughes. George's brother was Robert Walton who married Mary Sarah Hughes (sister of Martha). George was the uncle to Robert and Mary Sarah Walton's son, George "The Signer" Walton. In fact, they raised George "The Signer" when his father Robert passed away around 1750.

So... George "The Signer" Walton is uncle to my ancestor, August George Walton!

You can read more about George on Wikipedia here: George Walton on Wiki
AND, I just found out that he is interred in the Signer's Monument in Augusta Georgia, very near where my son will son be stationed in the Army at Fort Gordon. A visit to George "The Signer's" resting place is definitely on our trip list for next year.